U.S. Pat. No. 5,993,350 to Lawrie et al. provides a powertrain system for a hybrid vehicle. The hybrid vehicle includes a heat engine, such as a diesel engine, and an electric machine, which operates as both an electric motor and an alternator, to power the vehicle. The hybrid vehicle also includes a manual-style transmission configured to operate as an automatic transmission from the perspective of the driver. The engine and the electric machine drive an input shaft which in turn drives an output shaft of the transmission. In addition to driving the transmission, the electric machine regulates the speed of the input shaft in order to synchronize the input shaft during either an upshift or downshift of the transmission by either decreasing or increasing the speed of the input shaft. Operation of the transmission is controlled by a transmission controller which receives input signals and generates output signals to control shift and clutch motors to effect smooth launch, upshifts, and downshifts of the transmission.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,019,699 to Hoshiya et al. provides a drive control system for a hybrid vehicle that prevents a delay in the application of a one-way clutch in a transmission. In this drive control system, an electric motor and an internal combustion engine are coupled to the input side of a transmission having at least one gear stage to be set by applying a one-way clutch. The drive control system comprises: a detector for detecting a coasting state in which the one-way clutch is released in a deceleration state set with the gear stage; and, an input speed raising device for driving the electric motor when the coasting state is detected, so that the input speed of the transmission may approach the synchronous speed which is the product of the gear ratio of the gear stage to be set by applying the one-way clutch and the output speed of the transmission.